Waiting on Wednesday - Only Human

I'm posting a 'soon to be released' book on Wednesdays.  These will always be books that I am particularly looking forward to.  I'll be linking up to 'Can't-Wait Wednesday' hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and plan to take part in this each week.

The book I've selected this week is the 3rd in a sci-fi-ish trilogy.  And, yes, I've read the first two books and liked them very much.  The first one, Sleeping Giants, is about a girl who fall down a hole in the ground and finds herself in the palm of a giant metal robot.  The second book is Waking Gods and that one carries our story and characters forward.  The girl, Rose, is grown up and leads a team of scientists in discovering more about the robots.  Told through interviews, diaries, and memos (I love books formatted in interesting ways), the reader gets caught up in the tale (or at least this reader did).  This week:

Only Human

by Sylvain Neuvel

Publication Date:  May 1st

Brilliant scientist Rose Franklin has devoted her adult life to solving the mystery she accidentally stumbled upon as a child: a huge metal hand buried beneath the ground outside Deadwood, South Dakota. The discovery set in motion a cataclysmic chain of events with geopolitical ramifications. Rose and the Earth Defense Corps raced to master the enigmatic technology, as giant robots suddenly descended on Earth’s most populous cities, killing one hundred million people in the process. Though Rose and her team were able to fend off the attack, their victory was short-lived. The mysterious invaders retreated, disappearing from the shattered planet . . . but they took the scientist and her crew with them.

Now, after nearly ten years on another world, Rose returns to find a devastating new war—this time between humans. America and Russia are locked in combat, fighting to fill the power vacuum left behind after the invasion. Families are torn apart, friends become bitter enemies, and countries collapse in the wake of the battling superpowers. It appears the aliens left behind their titanic death machines so humankind will obliterate itself. Rose is determined to find a solution, whatever it takes. But will she become a pawn in a doomsday game no one can win?

Top 10 Tuesday - Favorite Book Quotes...and I'm using a repeat...

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly event that is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week's topic is 'Favorite Book Quotes'.  As I am on a short trip right now with my husband, I'm going to do a 'repeat' from this event a couple of years ago.  The quotes are still favorites.  Plus Dr. Seuss' birthday was last week, so we should celebrate.  

You know, sometimes so-called 'children's' books have some very, very wise sayings.  Five are from Harry Potter books and five are found in Dr. Seuss books - plus there is a bonus entry. Here's what I found, first from Harry Potter:

There are all kinds of courage.  It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.

~~Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone~~

It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.

~~Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone~~

It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.

~~Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets~~

If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.

~~Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire~~

Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort.  Remember Cedric Diggory.  

~~Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire~~

Here's what I found in the wisdom of Dr. Seuss:

It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight.

It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right.

But I think that the most likely reason of all

May have been that his heart was two sizes too small.

~~How the Grinch Stone Christmas~~

A person's a person no matter how small.

~~Horton Hears a Who!~~

We've GOT to make noises in greater amounts!

So, open your mouth, lad!  For every voice counts!

~~Horton Hears a Who!~~

I know up on top you are seeing great sights,

But down here on the bottom,

We too should have rights.

~~Yertle the Turtle~~

You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.

You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.

Wherever you fly, you'll be best of the best.

Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don't.

Because, sometimes, you won't.

~~Oh, The Places You'll Go!~~

And just for a bonus entry, this quote is from one of my daughter's favorite books when she was a wee one.  It's by Judith Viorst and says:

It's been a TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY.  My mom says some days are like that.  Even in Australia.

~~Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day~~

The Classics Club - Spin #17 - kay's list of 20

As you guys know, I'm pretty much a novice with The Classics Club.  I joined this year and also tweaked my list of 50 to fit my preferences of mystery/crime/Gothic/horror.  I've read two books so far and was pleased to see another Classics Club Spin event.  This is #17 and what it involves is members making a list of 20 books from their original list, sharing it with others, and then waiting for the 'spin' number.  That will be revealed on Friday, March 9th.  And I'll be back on Saturday with a short post telling which of the following 20 books I'll be reading by April 30th. 

My method for selecting these books was quite intricate - I went down the original list and took every other book - skipping a book I had already completed.  I told you - quite intricate and complicated.  Ha!  Here's my 20 books - have you read any of them?  If I had to pick one or two to avoid right now, probably 1-3 and 10.  Time constraints and I want to read the Jackson book for our mystery group Gothic October.  Otherwise, it's all good!

kay's 20 for Classics Club Spin #17

1. Northanger Abbey – Jane Austen (1817)

2. Collected Stories and Poems – Edgar Allan Poe (before 1849)

3. The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins (1859)

4. Turn of the Screw – Henry James (1898)

5. The Circular Staircase – Mary Roberts Rinehart (1908)

6. The Secret of the Old Clock – Carolyn Keene (1930)

7. Death on the Nile – Agatha Christie (1937)

8. The Red Carnelian – Phyllis A. Whitney (1943)

9. Death in Kashmir – M.M. Kaye (1953)

10. The Haunting of Hill House – Shirley Jackson (1959)

11. Mystery of the Haunted Pool – Phyllis A Whitney (1960)

12. This Rough Magic – Mary Stewart (1965)

13. Ammie Come Home – Barbara Michaels (1968)

14. The Blessing Way – Tony Hillerman (1970)

15. Last Bus to Woodstock – Collin Dexter (1975)

16. Where Are the Children? – Mary Higgins Clark (1975)

17. A Judgment in Stone – Ruth Rendell (1977)

18. The Westing Game – Ellen Raskin (1978)

19. The Cater Street Hangman – Anne Perry (1979)

20. A is for Alibi – Sue Grafton (1982)

Six Degrees of Separation - From The Beauty Myth to Backlash

I'm here with Six Degrees of Separation, a monthly link-up hosted by Kate at Books Are My Favourite and Best. She chooses a book as a starting point and then links to six other books to form a chain. A book doesn’t need to be connected to all the other books on the list, only to the one next to it in the chain.

The starting book of this month's chain is by Naomi Wolf, a book that was very controversial in the '90's - The Beauty Myth:

I have not read this book, though I was aware of it when it was published, 1990.  It's about how society tries to tell women how they 'should' look - like fashion models and celebrities.  It's about how women attempt to conform to those standards, to their own peril, both physically and mentally.  I may read this one at some point.

Connecting to the word 'Myth', we'll move on to Neil Gaiman's most recent book, Norse Mythology.  I have not read this one either, but I have long been a fan of these stories.  As you can see, Thor's Hammer is on the cover.  There is Odin and Thor and Loki and all the other characters that live in Asgard.  I understand that the author narrates the book in audio.

One of the Norse goddesses is 'Freya', so that's our connection here to Christina Sunley's book, The Tricking of Freya.   I did read this book soon after it was published in 2009.  It's about a young woman named Freya who grows up in the US, but visits her relatives in a small town in Canada each year, the village of Gimli.  It was settled by Icelandic immigrants and her Aunt Birdie tells her tales of the Norse gods, while also keeping a family secret.  Freya eventually travels to Iceland to learn more.

'Iceland' is the connection between books and we move on to Ragnar Jonasson's mystery, Snowblind.  Set in a small fishing village in northern Iceland, rookie policeman Ari Thor has a murder to solve.  He's new to the area and knows no one.  The locals are not talking, nor do they trust Ari.  And with almost 24-hours of darkness, it snows and snows and snows.  I've not read this book yet, but I am going to a mystery conference in April where the author will appear.  Can't wait!

The next book in our chain is Swiss Vendetta by Tracee de Hahn.  It's connected by 'Snow', though it could also be connected by 'author being at April mystery conference'.  Swiss Police Inspector Agnes Luthi has just transferred from Financial Crimes to Violent Crimes.  She's called out in a major blizzard to investigate her first homicide.  A woman has been murdered at a historic chateau and Agnes must try to solve the crime without much assistance from anyone.  A locked-room mystery that I am very much looking forward to reading.

And we move on to a book first published in 1847 - Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte.  The connection is the name 'Agnes'.  Like the main character in the story, Anne Bronte was a governess for several years.  The book is considered somewhat autobiographical and it details some of the oppression these women suffered as their choices of vocation were very limited.  This is the Bronte sister that I have not read as yet.

We will complete this chain's circle and come back to women and society.  The connecting factor is 'Women, Jobs, Choices'.  I did read Backlash by Susan Faludi when it was written in 1991.  It's about the backlash against women for victories won in the workplace.  It's about the glass ceiling, the man 'shortage' and infertility of women who were told that it occurred because they postponed childbearing too long.  It was an intriguing book, which won the 1991 National Book Critics Circle Award for General Nonfiction.

Well, this has been an interesting chain - certainly for me as I connected one book to another.  We've gone from a 'Beauty Myth' to 'Mythology' to 'Freya' to 'Iceland' to 'Snow' to 'Agnes' to 'Women, Jobs, Choices'.  From non-fiction to fiction to crime novels to classics.  I'll look forward to next month's Six Degrees (April 7th), when our starting place is Arthur Golden's bestseller, Memoirs of a Geisha (a book I've read - yay!). 

The Book That Matters Most - Ann Hood

The Book That Matters Most by Ann Hood

First Paragraph(s):

Ava saw it as soon as she turned the corner.  She stopped, squinting as if that would change what she was looking at.  It was a week before Christmas on Weybosset Street in downtown Providence.  The Christmas lights already shone, even at five o'clock, because the day was so dark and gray.  The air had that festive holiday feeling that came from people bustling about with oversized shopping bags, cold air, tired decorations, a guy selling Christmas trees on the corner.

My Thoughts:

I wanted to change up my reading for a bit after suffering from 'psychological thriller'-itis and this book definitely helped with that.  I took my time and, though I didn't love every character or every decision made, I really liked the book as a whole.  The idea of a book group using the theme of 'the book that matters most' for an entire year was lovely.  I liked how the chapters took us through the calendar year, gave us quotes and a bit of discussion about the various books chosen, and also presented the story from more than one viewpoint.  I also liked the fact that the book group had a couple of men.  I've moderated (as part of my library job) two of them, have participated in several more, and one of the commonalities is that there are never very many men.  Right now, our mystery group has two - at one time.  We've rarely have that happen.

The story is told mostly from Ava's point of view, but we also see what's going on with her daughter, Maggie, and a detective that investigated when Ava's younger sister, Lily, died when they were children.  Maggie is frustrating.  She's a young woman supposedly studying art history in Florence.  Actually, she's in Paris and reeling from one bad decision to another - drugs, men, more drugs, more men.  She's got a lot to learn.  Ava is trying to recover from the end of her marriage and the fact that her husband's new 'love' is a yarn-bomber - someone who covers important statues and monuments with knitted covers as a protest or a form of art.  I found that rather odd and had never heard of it.  Is it a real thing?  (I looked it up - it is a real thing.)

In the end, the characters discover that the book that matters most is one that comes to you at just the right time, depending on what's going on in your life.  And then, at another time, another book might matter most.  It's flexible and, as our lives have seasons, so will our reading.  For me personally, there have been books that seemed to come into my hands at just the perfect moment.  Two that I can think of are Still Alice and Being Mortal.  They were both very meaningful to me when I read them, based on my life experiences.  So, what book has 'mattered most' to you?  Share with us.

Oh, and Ann Hood tells the reader that before she wrote this book, she spent a year asking everyone she saw the question - what book has mattered most to you?  Her results can be seen here.  Also, my friend, Les, wrote such a good review of this book here, it encouraged me to try it.  So, my thanks, Les!

Blurb:

Ava’s twenty-five-year marriage has fallen apart, and her two grown children are pursuing their own lives outside of the country. Ava joins a book group, not only for her love of reading but also out of sheer desperation for companionship. The group’s goal throughout the year is for each member to present the book that matters most to them. Ava rediscovers a mysterious book from her childhood—one that helped her through the traumas of the untimely deaths of her sister and mother. Alternating with Ava’s story is that of her troubled daughter Maggie, who, living in Paris, descends into a destructive relationship with an older man. Ava’s mission to find that book and its enigmatic author takes her on a quest that unravels the secrets of her past and offers her and Maggie the chance to remake their lives.

Telling Tales - Ann Cleeves

Telling Tales by Ann Cleeves

First Paragraph(s):

Sitting at the bedroom window, Emma looks out at the night-time square.  The wind rattles a roof tile and hisses out from the churchyard, spitting a Coke can onto the street.  There was a gale the afternoon Abigail Mantel died and it seems to Emma that it's been windy ever since, that there have been ten years of storms, of hailstones like bullets blown against her windows and trees ripped from the earth by their roots.  It must be true at least since the baby was born.  Since then, whenever she wakes at night--to feed the baby or when James comes in late from work--the noise of the wind is there, rolling round her head like the sound of a seashell when you hold it to your ear.

My Thoughts:

This is the second book in Ann Cleeves' series featuring Inspector Vera Stanhope and her assistant, Sergeant Joe Ashworth.  I listened to this one on audio and it was ably narrated by Julia Franklin.  Audio was a good way to go for Telling Tales.  It's not a thrill-a-minute book, but a clever police procedural.  I was really caught up in the story of Vera and Joe, out of their usual patch, there to figure out what had happened 10 years before when an innocent woman was charged with murder.  Jeanie Long did not kill Abigail Mantel.  New evidence has proven it.  However, it's come too late as Jeanie has died in prison.  Vera, looking like her usual disheveled self, talks with everyone connected to the case and eventually the solution becomes clear.  Before that happens, another person is killed and some secrets are revealed.  I'm really loving these characters and this series.  Can't wait to move on to the next book, Hidden Depths.  Have you watched the TV adaptation, Vera?  I've watched a couple of episodes, but I've decided to read the books and watch later.  What do you think if you've seen it? 

Blurb:

It has been ten years since Jeanie Long was charged with the murder of fifteen-year-old Abigail Mantel. Now residents of the East Yorkshire village of Elvet are disturbed to hear of new evidence proving Jeanie’s innocence. Abigail’s killer is still at large.

For one young woman, Emma Bennett, the revelation brings back haunting memories of her vibrant best friend--and of that fearful winter’s day when she had discovered her body lying cold in a ditch.

As Inspector Vera Stanhope makes fresh enquiries on the peninsula and villagers are hauled back to a time they hoped to forget, tensions begin to mount. But are people afraid of the killer or of their own guilty pasts?

With each person’s story revisited, the Inspector begins to suspect that some deadly secrets are threatening to unfurl…

Waiting on Wednesday - All the Beautiful Lies

I'm posting a 'soon to be released' book on Wednesdays.  These will always be books that I am particularly looking forward to.  I'll be linking up to 'Can't-Wait Wednesday' hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and plan to take part in this each week.

This week's book is highly anticipated by me.  The author has written previous books that I have enjoyed very much - Her Every Fear and The Kind Worth Killing.  Both of them were written with themes from Hitchcock films.  I'm not sure if this one has that same vibe, but I'll be glad to see.  I'm waiting on:

All the Beautiful Lies

by Peter Swanson

Publication Date:  April 3rd

Harry Ackerson has always considered his stepmother Alice to be sexy and beautiful, in an "otherworldly" way. She has always been kind and attentive, if a little aloof in the last few years.

Days before his college graduation, Alice calls with shocking news. His father is dead and the police think it’s suicide. Devastated, Harry returns to his father’s home in Maine. There, he and Alice will help each other pick up of the pieces of their lives and uncover what happened to his father.

Shortly after he arrives, Harry meets a mysterious young woman named Grace McGowan. Though she claims to be new to the area, Harry begins to suspect that Grace may not be a complete stranger to his family. But she isn’t the only attractive woman taking an interest in Harry. The sensual Alice is also growing closer, coming on to him in an enticing, clearly sexual way.

Mesmerized by these two women, Harry finds himself falling deeper under their spell. Yet the closer he gets to them, the more isolated he feels, disoriented by a growing fear that both women are hiding dangerous—even deadly—secrets . . . and that neither one is telling the truth.

Top 10 Tuesday - kay's favorite books to read again and again...otherwise known as 'my comfort reads'

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly event that is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week's topic is 'Books I Could Re-read Forever', which I have, as usual, adjusted a bit to 'kay's favorite books to read again and again...otherwise known as 'my comfort reads'.

I actually wrote a blog discussion post about this a few years ago here.  I'm not going to repeat everything I said in it, but I will start with the same three quotes.  After that will come 10 books that I've read again and again.

I also will say that I know that not everyone likes to re-visit books favorites.  My top reason is probably to derive comfort when life gives me lemons - which it certainly has from time to time.  And I agree with the 3rd quote:  reading is indeed my refuge.

"Tell me what you read and I'll tell you who you are" is true enough, but I'd know you better if you told me what you reread.   ~~Francois Mauriac~~

When you reread a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in you than was there before.     ~~Clifton Fadiman~~

To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.     ~~W. Somerset Maugham~~

These 10 (OK, more than 10) books are in no particular order and I almost certainly enjoy and reread other books by the same authors, especially series books.

1.  The Secret - Julie Garwood -  historical romance - Scottish Highlands - a reluctant midwife and a Scottish laird

2.  Die For Love - Elizabeth Peters - mystery set at a romance writers convention - funny - big floppy hats, lots of hearts and valentines - and a body

3.  The Crying Child - Barbara Michaels - spooky old house in Maine - what's in the attic?

4.  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and the rest of the story - J.K. Rowling - it's Harry Potter - enough said

5.  A Murder is Announced - Agatha Christie - Miss Marple - a murder invite in the paper and you can come - Or if your tastes run to Hercule Poirot, Cards on the Table - 4 sleuths and 4 possible murderers

6.  Dance Upon the Air, Heaven and Earth, Face the Fire - Nora Roberts - the Three Sisters Island trilogy - romance and witches - what more do you want?

7.  The Shop on Blossom Street - Debbie Macomber - knitting and female friendship - plus a little romance - also the other books in the Blossom Street series

8.  Virgin River - Robyn Carr - a community in the Northern California hills - this whole series is delightful - romance and a great cast of characters

9.  Bootlegger's Daughter - Margaret Maron - the whole Judge Deborah Knott mystery series - set in North Carolina and including the very large Knott family - love these on audio

10.  A Share in Death - Deborah Crombie - the whole Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James mystery series - the way the relationships develop and all the interesting things you learn about London and other English locations - and the maps! 

This has been a fun exercise.  I could have listed so many more, but I won't.  So, do you reread books?  Why or why not?  Suggestions for me?

The Woman in the Window - A. J. Finn

The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn

First Paragraph(s):

Her husband's almost home.  He'll catch her this time.
     There isn't a scrap of curtain, not a blade of blind, in number 212--the rust-red townhome that once housed the newlywed Motts, until recently, until they un-wed.  I never met either Mott, but occasionally I check in online: His LinkedIn profile, her Facebook page.  Their wedding registry lives on at Macy's.  I could still buy them flatware.

My Thoughts:

The Woman in the Window is one of the most anticipated and publicized debuts in a while.  I was not sure it could possibly live up to all the hype - and it did in most ways, for me anyway.  Before I started it, I knew that it had a 'Rear Window' vibe to it and that it was about a woman who saw the world through her windows and her online activity.  She didn't leave her house and was, in fact, agoraphobic.  I find that condition very scary, probably because I could pretty easily imagine myself falling into it.  Anxiety is something that I have experienced most of my life and I've had a panic attack more than once.  The descriptions of those in this book seemed very real.  I liked the references to Hitchcock and old black-and-white movies.  That actually made me want to take notes and seek out the films mentioned to watch at a later time.  The self-destructive behavior of Anna, the protagonist, was harder to read about.  Her thought processes as she excused herself for combining alcohol and prescription meds were so sad.  Some of the twists were anticipated by me (my mind loves plot puzzles to solve) and a couple were not.  I think this one would film quite well, if the script was a good one.  All in all, in my opinion, it deserved much of the hype.  I liked it a lot and will definitely be watching for this author's next book.  Recommended.

Blurb:

It isn’t paranoia if it’s really happening . . .

Anna Fox lives alone—a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her day drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times . . . and spying on her neighbors.

Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, mother, their teenaged son. The perfect family. But when Anna, gazing out her window one night, sees something she shouldn’t, her world begins to crumble and its shocking secrets are laid bare.

What is real? What is imagined? Who is in danger? Who is in control? In this diabolically gripping thriller, no one—and nothing—is what it seems.

The Wife Between Us - Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

First Paragraph(s):

She walks briskly down the city sidewalk, her blond hair bouncing against her shoulders, her cheeks flushed, a gym bag looped over her forearm.  When she reaches her apartment building, her hand dips into her purse and pulls out her keys.  The street is loud and busy, with yellow cabs racing by, commuters returning from work, and shoppers entering the deli on the corner.  But my eyes never stray from her.
     She pauses in her entryway and briefly glances back over her shoulder.  An electrical charge seems to pulse through me.  I wonder if she feels my stare.  Gaze detection, it's called--our ability to sense when someone is observing us.  An entire system of the human brain is devoted to this genetic inheritance from our ancestors, who relied on the trait to avoid becoming an animal's prey.  I've cultivated this defense in myself, the sensation of static rising over my skin as my head instinctively lifts to search out a pair of eyes.  I've learned the danger of dismissing that warning.

My Thoughts:

I liked this book quite a bit, though I think I might be hitting my limit for a while with psychological thrillers.  That happened to me last year and I had to take a break from them.  I listened to this book on audio (yes, I really like audio for my walking time) and it was very ably narrated by Julia Whelen.  I've read a couple of other books by Sarah Pekkanen and am a fan.  Greer Hendricks is a debut novelist, but she's been Sarah's editor for most, if not all, of her books.  They know each other well and did a little interview segment at the end of the audio.

So, what can I tell you about the book?  Well, I'm not going to say much at all.  This is one of those that the less you know, the better it will be.  Read the blurb below if you want a couple of hints.  Yes, there were things I guessed.  No, I didn't guess all of them.  I was surprised more than once.  And only annoyed a few times.  One of the authors that blurbed the book said it was like a 'house of mirrors'.  I think that's a good analogy.  If you've ever been to the fair and gone into 'The Fun House', one of those weird walk-through rides where the floor shifts and there are spinning things and a house of mirrors.  You feel a little upside-down.  This book turns up and down and all around more than once.  Enjoy and don't get dizzy!

Blurb:

When you read this book, you will make many assumptions.
You will assume you are reading about a jealous ex-wife.
You will assume she is obsessed with her replacement – a beautiful, younger woman who is about to marry the man they both love.
You will assume you know the anatomy of this tangled love triangle.
Assume nothing.

Twisted and deliciously chilling, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen's The Wife Between Us exposes the secret complexities of an enviable marriage - and the dangerous truths we ignore in the name of love.

Read between the lies.